Solaris Mortem: The New Patriots (23 page)

He and Kat switched seats, and Terry eased the door open, holding his breath. For all he knew, they were waiting right outside. Terry peered out into the darkness and saw nothing. The sky was still overcast so neither the moon nor the stars could lend any light. “Okay. It’s clear.”

Terry hopped down and helped Kat from the truck. They faced away from one another and relieved themselves. Terry tried not to pee on his boots with limited success. It wasn’t easy pissing into the wind.

They climbed back up into the truck and Terry closed the door as gently as he could, hoping the snow would remain stuck to the door. Most of it fell away, and Diane woke up.

She looked around in the candlelit cab and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “Where’s Duncan? And that Italian?”

“Vince,” Alisia said, correcting her mother, “Vince and Duncan aren’t back yet.”

“Well, where are they?”

“I…don’t know.” Alisia, Terry, and Kat all shared a
look,
eyes darting about.

“What’s going on?” Diane said. “What’s happened?”

Walking back, against the wind was much worse than walking with it.
Goggles would have been nice,
Duncan thought. The driving snow and ice pellets bit into his eyes like tiny knives. “Maybe we ought to hunker down for a little bit!” He shouted, competing with the wind.

“Yeah, okay!” Vince replied.

Duncan pointed to an open storage container beside the road, part of a construction staging area. “In there!”

They’d nearly made it to the summit, but turned back when the futility of their mission was fully realized. Sure, they could hike further and sleep somewhere else, but why? Why drag Diane, protesting all the way, through a snowstorm if it wasn’t necessary? Mostly, it had been about fighting the fatigue of cabin fever, anyhow. And they had found another blanket in the trunk of an abandoned car, so it wasn’t all for naught.

“Maybe this wasn’t my brightest idea ever,” Duncan said, watching the snow pile up. The wind whipped it into mini white tornadoes.

“Yeah, well…even worse, would have been staying in that truck another second longer with Diane,” Vince said.

Duncan laughed. “She’s not the easiest person in the world to appreciate, is she?”

“No.”

“But…we did get a doctor out of the deal.”

“True.”

“Hey,” Duncan said, standing up straighter and peering out the door. “Do you see that?”

“What?” Vince said.

“That light. Someone’s coming.”

“Who is it?” Vince said, straining to see. He’d lost his glasses some time ago, and his eyesight wasn’t the best.

“I don’t know. They’re too far out.”

“Can you tell how many? Is it Terry and everybody?”

“I hope so,” Duncan said.

The group continued to approach and minutes dragged on like hours.

“Oh shit…”

“What?” Vince said.

“It’s not them. There’s too many. And they’re too tall.”

“Too tall?

“Yeah, too tall. No kids with them and I count seven…all armed,” Duncan said.

“Oh, shit…. Is it Rick?”

“Could be. Can’t tell,” Duncan said. “Let’s get out of this container while we still can. You can bet that whoever they are, they’re going to want to get out of the snow, too.”

Duncan and Vince snuck around to the back of the container and waited.

“They’re going to see our tracks,” Vince said.

“Nothing we can do about it,” Duncan said, peering through the scope of the rifle.

“If it’s him, I say you pop him.”

“Can’t. If I do that, we’re dead for sure.”

“True, but so is Rick.”

Duncan wondered if maybe he should just start shooting. He could probably get at least a couple of them. But what if this group just passed them by, otherwise? Giving away their position would be foolish.

He was paralyzed by indecision. If only he could see who it was out there. If he waited too long, it would be too late. If it was Rick, and he didn’t shoot him, he hated to think what Rick would do to them. Rick wasn’t going to just shoot them. Not with the others still out there.
Unless he’d already dealt with them?
No, he’d torture the both of them to give up the others. Duncan could not accept that possibility and he fired.

His target fell. Headshot. He hoped it was Rick,
prayed
it was Rick. Panic’s long, icy fingers gripped his insides as he pulled the bolt back, chambering another round.

“Jesus Christ!” Vince said. “What happened to
we’re dead if we do that?
”

A volley of automatic weapon reports erupted, peppering the storage container they crouched behind.

“Option-lock,” Duncan said. He swung out from his cover and took another shot. This time, he hit a man in the shoulder. Whether he’d made the right choice or not, they were in it now. If only they had another gun.

It was fully dark, and the wanderers had still not returned when the shots rang out.

It was Kat that heard them first. “What was that? Are those…gunshots?”

Terry didn’t hear it immediately. “What? I don’t hear anything.”

“Who’s shooting, Mom?” Jonathan asked. “What are they shooting at?”

Kat hushed him.

“She’s right,” Alisia said. “That sounds like gunfire.”

“Oh shit,” Terry said. “I’ve got to go help them.”

“No!” Kat said. “Are you crazy? What do you think you’re going to do? Run a few miles up the road in a blizzard and save the day?”

“I have to do something. I can’t just sit here and wait it out.”

“She’s right, Terry,” Alisia said. “By the time you reach them,
if
you find them at all, it will all be over. All you’d accomplish is making tracks in the snow leading them right back here to us.”

It was hard for Terry to argue against that logic. She was right. They were both right. But how could he just sit idly by while his companions were under attack? He realized he didn’t have much choice.

After seven or eight minutes, that seemed like hours, the shots abated.

Alisia cocked her head slightly. “It’s stopped.”

“Yep,” Terry said and exhaled heavily like he’d been holding his breath the entire time.

“I hope they’re okay,” Kat said, looking out into the nothing.

“Mom?” Jonathan said. “Are
we
going to be okay?”

“Yes. Yes, we're going to be fine.”

Neither Jonathan nor Tabitha looked like they believed it. Not for a second.

“Hey, you guys want a fruit snack or a taffy?” Terry asked. Tabitha accepted at once. Jonathan took more convincing. The novelty of this adventure was wearing thin.

“We had better keep a watch, tonight,” Terry said. “In case Vince and Duncan–or if….” He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t need to, and he didn’t want to scare the kids any more than they already were. “I’m just going to peek outside real quick.” He grabbed the shotgun and hopped down to nearly a foot of new snow.

Terry stood outside for thirty minutes scanning the dark. He saw nothing and he heard nothing but the wind. He patted his pocket and made sure he still had the map that Duncan had drawn him,
just in case.
The
not knowing,
was the worst kind of torture.

He climbed back into the truck. “I think it’s all clear. Why don’t you all try and get some rest? I’ll take first watch.”

“I’ll stay up with you,” Alisia said.

“You don’t have to do that,” Terry said, cradling the shotgun in his lap. “Try and get some sleep.”

“I know, I don’t
have
to. I
want
to.”

“Well, all right.” He was glad for the company and eventually the others drifted off.

“Do you think they’re okay?” Alisia said.

Terry waited a moment before answering. “I don’t know…. I hope so.” But the truth was, he didn’t feel hopeful about it.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

A
barrage of cover fire from the interstate kept them pinned down behind the container. Maybe this hadn’t been a good idea. Rick and his men knew exactly where they were now, and they were coming for them. Coming to
end
them. “This might be it,” Duncan said. “Whatever happens—don’t tell them
anything
.”

“No shit, Cochise.”

Duncan stepped out, shrieked some kind of war cry, and squeezed off his last shot. It went high, hitting nothing. Enemy fire cut him down before he could take aim at the marauders in the snowy dark. His parting thoughts were of his son. Duncan fell, twitching momentarily, before falling silent. Moonlight illuminated the growing red patch of snow shrouding his body and Vince was all alone.

He dropped to his belly and clamored for the fallen rifle.

“Stop. Right. There,” a voice said, behind him. The bolt on his rifle clicked to accentuate the point.

“Okay.”

“Stay down and spread eagle unless you want me to shoot you in the back.” Vince stayed down. “I got him!” Trevor shouted back to his cohorts.

More footsteps approached, their sound muffled by the snow. “Well, well, what have we here?” Vince recognized the voice—Rick.

“Hands behind your back.” Vince complied, and Trevor cuffed him, tight.

“Why don’t we all get out of the weather for a bit?” Rick said, his tone fit for suggesting a Sunday drive or maybe a walk in the park. The other man heaved Vince up by his hands bound behind his back. The muscles in his shoulders burned and tore slightly.

Vince marched around to the double door, rifle muzzle in his back. The soldier threw him down and shined an LED flashlight in his face.

“So, Vince,” Rick began. “It’s nice to see you again.”

“Yeah….”

“Though, I wish you and your buddies hadn’t dragged me
all the way out here.
This has been a real inconvenience for me—for us all. One of my men is dead. But, so is one of yours,” Rick said, holding his hands out to his side, teetering like a scale.

Vince just stared at him.

“So…why don’t we just get on with it and tell me where the rest of your company is.”

Vince continued to stare at him, mouth in park, but his mind spun.

“Go on…. I promise you, this
is
your best option. Your
only
option, actually. You
will
talk. The only question is how much you’ll suffer before you do.”

“It was just Duncan and me,” Vince said. “The rest are already dead.”

Rick studied his face, casting long shadows, in the shadowy metal box. “I don’t know, Vince…. That just sounds…really convenient.”

“It’s the truth.”

The other man kicked Vince in the ribs for his lie.

“It’s not. Now, cut the shit,” Rick said. “Where are they?”

“I told you—they’re dead.”

The other man kicked Vince again. Harder, this time. Ribs broke in front of Trevor’s steel toe.

Rick paced. “How?” How did they die?”

Vince looked up to Rick, laboring to breathe. “Looters…on the road. We were attacked, and just me and Duncan got out. The rest are dead.”

“You’re lying,” Rick said. “At least, I
think
you're lying.” He nodded at Trevor, who kicked Vince again. “I've found pain to be the best instrument for freeing tongues. So, I'm going to ask you again. Where are they, Vince?”

“I’ll kill you,” Vince said between ragged breaths. Trevor's rifle butt cracked Vince’s skull, and he slumped over, quiet for awhile.

“Do you believe him?” Trevor asked.

“I don’t know,” Rick said, “but if they
are
still alive, they’re close. I’ll bet we can spook ‘em out. Maybe we already have.”

“If they’re close, they probably heard the gun shots.”

“Exactly,” Rick said, looking around the container. “This looks like a fine place to call home for the night. Let’s get everybody in here and have a look at Anthony’s shoulder.”

“Yes, Chancellor,” Trevor said and saluted.

“Trevor?”

“Sir?”

“We don’t really have to do that out here.”

“Yes, Sir,” Trevor said, and he went about gathering the others and making camp. Rick stood over Vince and waited for him to wake.

A muted candle burned down to nothing and put itself out. The sun’s rays were visible behind the mountain, and the snow had stopped, at least for the time being. Terry and Alisia had kept a sleepy guard all throughout the night with nothing to report, thankfully.

Kat was fixing breakfast for them all. Vienna sausages, crackers, and cheese—from a can. Terry looked forward to the day when they were settled and could hopefully eat a little better. “So, what’s next?” Kat asked, spreading the pseudo cheese over crackers.

“We’ve gotta keep moving,” Terry said, rubbing his palm over the stubble on his face. “We keep scavenging, and hopefully, we find another gun or three.”

“Rick’s up ahead,” Kat said, passing out paper plates.

“I know he is,” Terry said, begrudgingly putting a cold, jelly-slicked sausage in his mouth.

“Maybe we can just sneak around him or hide out until he leaves,” Kat said.

“I’m
not
eating this,” Diane said, crossing her arms.

“Can I have it?” Jonathan asked. He liked Vienna sausages and cheese from a can, bless his heart.

“Mom, you have to eat,” Alisia said. “Please.”

“I’m not eating that. And I’m freezing!”

Alisia sighed. “Okay.” She wondered if she should have just left her mom behind in New Seattle. “I’ll light you a candle, Mom.”

“A candle,” Diane murmured.

Just then, when Terry’s sleep deprivation threatened to crack his cool, he heard something. “
Shhh
!” he hissed, rolling down the window a couple inches.

“
Come out, come out, wherever you are. Come out or we kill your friend, Vince, here.”
The announcement echoed up and down the freeway corridor. Rick was up ahead, not too far, with Vince and a bullhorn. “
We’ve got your buddy, Vince. Come out and join us. We just want to talk.
”

“Rick will never stop,” Terry said. “We kill him, or he kills us. We
have
to finish this.”

“
Duncan’s dead, but Vince is still alive…for now. Vince, why don’t you say a few words?
”